


And Witty And Bright

by yougavemeahome (emzedragon)



Series: Stunning and Entrancing [1]
Category: Agent Carter (TV), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Agender Tony Stark, Aunt Peggy, Gen, Maria Stark Exists, Non-Binary Tony Stark, Nonbinary Character, Rhodey Is a Good Bro, Tony Stark Needs a Hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-17
Updated: 2015-02-17
Packaged: 2018-03-13 12:54:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,556
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3382277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emzedragon/pseuds/yougavemeahome
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tony Stark first wears a dress to a public function when he's fourteen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	And Witty And Bright

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally posted [on my tumblr](http://yougavemeahome.tumblr.com/post/111308835126/someone-asking-tony-why-hes-wearing-a-dress-and) and was inspired by the sudden wave of nonbinary!Tony on my dash, largely thanks to [tinmantonystark](http://madeofiron.co.vu/). It was written in two hours, and has been lightly edited but not changed. I blame [Mariah](http://pensversusswords.tumblr.com/) for everything. I intend to write more of this Tony, it was a lot more cathartic than I thought it would be. Enjoy.
> 
> Side note: In this bit of the story, I used male pronouns throughout. This is partially because everyone writing headcanons was using male pronouns, and partially because Tony doesn't really know what he is/they are yet (the internet is a wonderful thing). So he is/they are not male, but that isn't clear just yet. This may change in later chapters.
> 
> Second side note: In the future, if this story reaches it, this will probably become a Steve Rogers/Tony Stark story. It might also have some Tony/Pepper and Tony/Rumiko. Just fyi.

The first time Tony attends a public event in feminine dress, it makes the front page. Howard doesn't even wait until they're in private to yell at him, but Aunt Peggy and his mother stand at his shoulders, and he doesn't feel ashamed. He feels good about himself; it's kind of euphoric actually, being able to express this part of himself. He likes the suits, too, but there's something thrilling about wearing a floor-length burgundy gown that took five hours to pick out and cost $3,500 and a diamond necklace that is probably worth more than the dress and shoes put together. He knows he looks good, too; Aunt Peggy did his makeup, this time, because he wanted to make sure it would be perfect.

Before the party, Tony almost has a change of heart. Getting ready over the last couple of weeks for this has been thrilling. Having his mother and aunt accept him completely and spoil him with lessons and gifts is the best thing that's ever happened to him, and that includes getting accepted into MIT. But it's suddenly terrifying to think about exposing himself to everybody in the world. From now on, he could end up being "the boy who wears dresses" to everybody, including his future employees and most importantly his father. They've been hiding everything from Howard, knowing how he'd react, and it's quickly counting down to when he knows.

Tony has ten minutes before he has to leave. His father already left; he had to be there early, for business purposes. His mother is making the car is back and ready and she has everything she needs, and Aunt Peggy is helping him put on the final touches. She fastens the earrings on - they hadn't had time to get his ears pierced, so they're only clip-ons, but they're still beautiful - and spins him around to face the floor-length mirror.

"You look gorgeous, sweetheart," she tells him, while he's staring at himself and gathering the courage to walk out of his room. "And remember what I taught you, if anyone starts to get fresh with you."

"First two knuckles, keep your wrist straight, aim for the nose or the solar plexus, do it fast but pull your arm back first." Tony grins at her in the mirror. "I got it, Auntie."

Maria opens the door carefully. "Oh, baby, you're stunning! See, I told you it would be great." She comes over and smooths down his hair and adjusts his necklace. "The lip color looks perfect, Pegs, did you do it?"

"Yes. Tony was a little nervous about messing it up, so I told him I would do it just this once. Oh, and I almost forgot!" She pulls a crystal bottle out of the purse she set on his dresser. Tony knows exactly what it is, and a bubble of excitement expands in his chest. "Since this is a special occasion, I thought it was the appropriate time to give you this."

He takes the perfume bottle reverently. "Now remember, don't use too much. Too much scent is worse than no scent. If you stop smelling it, don't reapply - it's still there. And I'm not giving you another bottle for a few years, so make it last."

Tony nods, knowing he won't be able to speak without choking up. He sprays the tiniest amount on his wrists and neck, and basks in the smell that has always meant Aunt Peggy to him. Now he feels ready to show the world who Tony Stark really is.

For a while, he wears a dress to every dinner or lunch or party his parents drag him too, because he doesn't want anyone to think it was just a goof. And anyway, it makes the events less awful to think about, when he knows that beforehand his mother will take him shopping (in direct defiance of Howard, too). His collection of feminine clothes grows steadily, comprised not only of gowns but of pretty shirts and casual dresses. And his shoe collection, while no where near Maria's, is still pretty impressive for only having been started a year ago.

Eventually, he realizes that he doesn't want to give up the suits forever, though. And the longer he waits, the more of a shock it will be when he doesn't wear a suit. He didn't start this to shock people, just to express himself, and he isn't a girl - he's something in between. Which means that it's okay to wear suits and ties, too.

He isn't exactly scared about letting his mother and aunt know, but he's a little afraid they might be disappointed. Maybe they won't get that he wants both the dresses and the suits. When he does tell Maria, though, he realizes that he should have known. His mother doesn't even blink; she calls up the tailor Howard's used for years and makes an appointment, and asks him if he'd like Jarvis to come with him this time.

It doesn't make the front page this time, but it does make the front of the society section. Tony's family - and that includes Jarvis and Aunt Peggy - is religiously "no comment", but the reporter does get a couple of quotes from one of the maids, who is promptly found and fired, and an attendant at one of the boutiques. Tony's fairly sure Aunt Peggy paid the place a visit, because when they do go back a couple months later, no one looks her in the eye.

At school, no one outright bullies him. College is better than high school in several ways, not the least of which is that his exceptionally young age mostly makes everyone ignore him, instead of pick on him. He can't even imagine what it would have been like to start this in high school, even if the students there wouldn't have been able to see it regularly. Another good thing about college - no uniforms. He also has an apartment to himself.

The incidents happen at parties. He's been scared more than once, pulling on a dress specially designed for his body and filling in his lips and eyes with the colors Aunt Peggy gave him for his birthday. Sometimes, he's noticed the looks certain people start to give him after they have a few drinks, and he leaves before it becomes a problem. He's protected by his money and his status, but he doesn't pretend that deters everybody. He watches his drink like his mother taught him, watches his back like Aunt Peggy taught him.

Only once has he actually been scared for his life. Usually he gets a warning, some kind of buildup of tension in the room. But this feels planned. Nothing seems wrong at first, so he stays later than usual. At two in the morning, it's quieted down. He's lounging on whoever's couch this is, slightly tipsy, with a devoted audience of a couple of junior girls who look smashed. He's telling them about the time he and Janet van Dyne snuck out of a society dinner together and went swimming in their underwear in the host's pond. They had pretended they were mermaids, luring men to their deaths - they took turns being the man. It was all very silly, until they had been found. (It may have been one of the few times his mother was really, truly furious with him.)

He doesn't notice the three guys moving around until one of them grabs his arm. They nod at the girls. "We're just taking him out for a breath of air, don't mind us," one of them says, and they're too out of their minds to do anything but nod and giggle.

Tony tries to yank his arm out of the grip, but the guy is huge and sober, Tony's wearing three-inch heels, and he is verging on drunk. He struggles, then starts yelling at them, but they move out of the house pretty quickly. It's a rich kid's house, so there's a sizable backyard, which is not good news for him.

The guy who has his arm shoves him onto the ground from the deck. He lands awkwardly, and pain shoots up his arm. It doesn't feel broken, but it isn't good. He flips onto his back, groaning a little, and tries to get his feet steady so he can get back up. His balance is more precarious than usual. Unwilling to waste any time, he throws a punch with his good arm at the closest one. Amazingly, it connects, and he hears the crunch of a broken nose. Aunt Peggy would be proud.

The guy cries out and covers his nose gingerly. "You little faggot!" he shouts, and takes a wild swing. Tony blocks it, but it distracts him enough that one of the other guys gets him good in the stomach, and he doubles over. "Take that, you little fairy!" The third one grabs his bad arm, and he yells in pain. When he tries to kick the second guy in the balls, he evades it easily, and in retaliation punches Tony in the face.

"Get the hell off me, you big fucking douchebag!" he shouts, and headbutts the guy behind him, who has both arms now. His head connects, but it doesn't break this guy's nose like he hoped. It does get him a string of unimaginative curses and a punch from the guy whose nose he broke.

"Now listen up here, faggot. You're gonna get what you deserve for bein' an insult to God and nature, and you can take it like a man or start cryin' like the little bitch you are. Now -"

Tony doesn't wait for him to finish. He stomps down, hard, on the foot of the guy holding him, and as soon as the hands around his arms loosen he breaks their grip and runs as fast as he can. The jackass is still howling in pain when he escapes through the door of the house. He abandons his jacket and just leaves as quickly as possible, cradling his arm. There's a house a few doors down having a party too, and he knows he can hide there. He doesn't get past the foyer, though, before running into the guy standing at the door.

He's familiar from a few of Tony's engineering classes, but he doesn't know the guy's name. What he does know is that the three guys are right behind him, and he's already busted up.

The guy takes one look at his arm, his cheek, and his dress, though, and waves him into the closet in the hall. "Wait there for a minute," he whispers, and Tony gratefully squishes himself into the back of the closet. He hears the douchebags stomp up to the door and shout at his new friend for a moment, and shrinks back. He can't make out the words through all the coats and the closet door, but he hears a little more yelling, and then it quiets down. When it's his new friend who pulls back the jackets and smiles at him, he mentally thanks a god he's not sure he believes in and follows the guy into the smaller living room, which is almost empty. The other occupants are a couple who seem much more interested in each other than new arrivals, and a boy who looks like he's asleep in the ratty armchair.

The guy sits him down on the other couch. "You want a glass of water or something? Ice pack, maybe?" he asks, eyeing the arm Tony is cradling to his chest.

"Yes please." Tony paused for a second. "Hey, what's your name?" he asked. "Figure I should know who saved my ass."

His new friend grins at him. "You did a pretty good job too, from the looks of those guys," he informs him. "I'm James - Jim - Rhodes."

Tony makes a face. "Jim is so weird. I refuse to call you Jim." He thinks for a moment, enjoying the amused look on Rhodes' face. "Rhodey. You can be Rhodey."

Rhodey laughs. "Whatever makes you comfortable. I'll get you that ice pack and water now."

Suddenly, for the first time that isn't around his mother, his aunt, Jarvis, or Jan, he doesn't feel like he's the rich genius boy who wears dresses. Rhodey hasn't once given him any sidelong looks, there are no double meanings in any of his words. He hasn't even mentioned the obvious - the Three Musky Assholes, as he has decided to call them, were after him because he was a boy in a dress, not because he was five years younger and about to graduate. When Rhodey come back with a glass of water, an ice pack, and an ace bandage, Tony starts to tear up, to his dismay, and not because of the pain.

He sits still while Rhodey wraps up his arm, drinking the water in hopes it will mask how really, he wants to cry. He knew when he started this, three years ago, that things would be harder. They couldn't deny him acceptance to MIT, because he'd already been enrolled, and they can't kick him out, because his father would sue the school blind regardless of how he actually feels about Tony's "strangeness" or "quirks" or "habits", and he has been pretty sheltered so far. But there have been teachers who lowered his grades for arbitrary things or ignored him or "lost" his work, and there have been students who treated him like something lesser, and he has no friends other than a few people who hang around him because he's loaded, and the tabloids have a field day with him no matter how he acts. So this, being actually terrified for his life, it seems like the last straw.

He starts when he feels a big arm wrap around his shoulders. Rhodey carefully takes the glass from him and sets it on the table. His expression is a little uncertain, and he pats Tony's chest awkwardly, but he keeps his arm around him and doesn't say anything when Tony starts to cry softly.

They sit there together for a few minutes, Tony letting the shock and fear of the night catch up to him and getting it out of his system. He stops shaking gradually, and what little noise he was making trails off.

"You know, I meant it. Those boys looked pretty beaten up. Pretty good, for three against one." Rhodey doesn't look at him, and his tone is light. He's obviously trying to make Tony feel better, and it works. Humor is always a good remedy.

Tony gives a laugh that sounds a little wet, but neither of them comment on it. "My Aunt - Aunt Peggy, she taught me to fight," he says, his voice hitching a little. "It was all well and good to act like a lady, she always said, but you still need to know how to fight like a right bitch." He wipes his cheeks with the back of his good hand and laughs again. "She's gonna be so proud of me."

Rhodey's startled into laughing as well. "I bet she will be, Tones." He turns and smiles down at the boy on his chest, and Tony knows this is the start of a long and beautiful friendship.


End file.
